SCR unveils new venues

'Re/Dedication 2002' to fete expanded theater complex

NEW YORK — South Coast Repertory, the Tony-winning nonprofit theater in Southern California’s Orange County, will introduce its $40 million expansion and renovation next fall as it begins its 39th season.

“SCR: Re/Dedication 2002″ is the umbrella name for a series of fall events celebrating the expanded theater complex. Series kicks off with a gala Oct. 5 and concludes with the opening of the new secondary stage, called the Julianne Argyros Stage, on Nov. 8.

The mainstage space, now dubbed the Segerstrom Stage and renovated at a cost of $1 million, will open with a Shaw revival, an SCR specialty. Company artistic director Martin Benson will direct “Major Barbara,” opening Oct. 18.

The 336-seat Argyros Stage, which replaces the significantly smaller Second Stage, will open Nov. 8 with a new play by Richard Greenberg, “The Violet Hour,” directed by Evan Yionoulis.

The former Second Stage will become a 99-seat space, the Nicholas Studio. It will be used for special projects and festivals and also will serve as home to annual productions by SCR’s Young Conservancy Players.

The mainstage season will feature a world premiere by Lynn Nottage, “Intimate Apparel,” and the Argyros season will feature the West Coast premiere of “The Drawer Boy” by Michael Healey.